Inexperience
by Conjure Lass
Summary: A simple vacation with someone you care for can turn into a very warm experience.  Set after the end of Death Note, so slightly AU.


Hi everyone! Yet another Mello x Near fic. This time I wrote one for a friend's contest, but seeing as how its now over I don't feel badly about sharing it with you all. The theme was "cold"...and this is what I came up with!

I proooomise i'm working on Passing Circumstance! Christmas is just taking a lot of my time!

**Inexperience**

It was the cacophony of the crowd, steady and vast, that Near noticed first. After the shock of thousands of people all being shoved into the same place wore off, it was the cold, bitterly oppressive, that stung at his nose and eyes. The ground was blanketed in white at every turn, practically making him blend into the scenery, monstrosities made of snow and ice rising up around him in all directions. When Mello had suggested they travel back to Japan for their yearly ice festival, Near hadn't really anticipated how tremendously frosty it would be in the middle of February.

He was frozen solid already…he was sure of it.

"Hurry up Near, there's a big snow statue of dinosaurs over there," Mello called from a few feet in front of him, pointing down the temporary street towards what had to be the largest artistic pile of snow Near had ever seen. "Come on!"

Near didn't have time to protest as his gloved hand was encased in Mello's, their fingers linking together, the small heat making Near smile. It was two years since the end of the Kira case, and this was the first time he'd visited the country of his greatest enemies defeat. Well…_their_ greatest enemy, as Yagami Raito had also been the sworn adversary of Mello, the one who's hand Near's own was solidly wrapped in.

"Wow," Mello breathed, breath puffing clouds into the air as his wide blue eyes stared up at the twenty foot tall snow dinosaurs in front of them. For the briefest instant he looked less like the hardened criminal that he was and more like the boy he'd once been, the long scar being the only thing that marred the self-made illusion. Though perhaps that person had always been inside of the older boy, simply masked over in his desperation to catch Kira…to become number one. Now that all that nonsense was finished, perhaps Mello's truer personality could come forward, a slightly softer side underneath the tough and hotheaded exterior.

While his companion's amused gaze was focused on the artwork, Near's found that his attention was focused elsewhere. Without any kind of rhyme or reason his eyes were now trained on the blonde, on the way Mello's hand unconsciously squeezed his own, the way his chest rose and fell, the smile in his eyes as he looked down at Near with slight confusion. He felt himself cataloging it all, storing the moment away for safe keeping in case he ever wanted to call upon it later. It was a strange sensation, not unlike an obsession, like emotion gone out of control.

"What?" his blonde-haired companion said, eyebrow raising. "What's so interesting? If you're not having fun will you just tell me?"

Startled at being caught staring so blatantly, Near sniffled quietly and smiled, moving his free sleeve to his nose to wipe away the steady stream. "Just cold," he murmured, squeezing Mello's fingers once more before pulling them further down the street, a bemused lover behind him.

The sun was setting, the streetlamps all beginning to glow placidly, little food stands sending faint trails of steam up into the cool winter air along with the heady smell of the local dishes. Though he was loathe to show it, Near couldn't remember being so pleasant, so perfectly at ease with his whole world, nothing bothering him except the ever-present trail of mucus dripping from his nose. It was the best vacation (since he'd never really had one) that he could remember, made better by the presence of the blonde beside him.

Suddenly from somewhere down the street, the lights within the huge ice buildings (so big you could walk through them) began to shimmer, sending shards of colored illumination across the sky and onto the faces of the enraptured crowd. One by one people began to move into the structures, children giggling as they slipped and fell all over the ice, their happy voices echoing inside the frozen creations. Mello and Near walked slowly past each one with wondrous expressions before stopping at an especially large one that was built to look like a castle, Near's gaze transfixed for the moment. It's detail was impeccable, Near noted, trying to count each small window and measure the doorways to scale in his mind.

"Let's go in," Mello pulled on his hand forcefully, snapping Near from his thoughts as he was dragged across the snow.

"Mello," Near protested. "We could fall and break something. I would rather just look at it."

Still pulling Near's hand (and subsequently his body) towards the castle, Mello made an annoyed face and paused. "You always watch. Why not _do_? It's not like you'll die…"

A bright smile accompanied the teasing words, making Near feel a little better despite his own mental protests. Maybe Mello was right. Maybe he did need to do more than just look at everything. Of course, that could also very well mean that Mello needed to do more thinking before he acted, but Near wasn't in the mood for that kind of argument. The blonde was volatile when on the defensive. Besides…this was supposed to be a vacation, right?

The castle was like something out of a Disney fantasy, Near noted as he walked through the hallways made of ice. True, it wasn't as big as a _real_ castle, but that certainly didn't mean that it wasn't lifelike. Small lights, shining and colorful, had been frozen inside the blocks, making the whole scenario seem somewhat disco-like. Mello was slowly sliding his way up to the set of icy stairs that led to the top, running his long fingers along the solid surfaces around him in an attempt to stay upright. The colors were bouncing off his black coat and pants, lighting them seemingly from within, penetrating his golden hair, beautiful and shining with pigment in the strands. Even his eyes, blue and clear, were glittering in the lights.

And all at once…Near was dumbstruck

It was unlike any emotion he'd ever felt in his life, an intense sense of awe that shattered his conscious thought and left him drowning in sensation. The only moment that could have even mildly compared was the instant that Mello had walked through the doorway of Near's headquarters after the Kira case was solved. It had all been there in the way Near's heart had pounded furiously, finding his polar opposite…his other half…alive and well. However, that reaction had had some kind of stimuli, this reaction seemed without provocation…totally out of the blue. The two moments, past and present, were obviously very similar…

Yet completely different.

"Mello…," he said softly, walking forward as though his feet were propelled on their own. The world was narrowing down to a small band of awareness, to the way Mello's cheeks felt, cool and soft under his gloves, to the way he was unceremoniously pulling his wayward lover down to his mouth. Their lips met like a freight train, Near automatically closing his eyes in a completely and utterly rare moment of spontaneity. Honestly, he was probably as surprised as Mello, who's muffled sounds of shock were lost between their lips.

It didn't take long for Mello to react, deepening the kiss and wrapping his arms around Near's smaller frame, pulling him closer. If there was one thing that always impacted the blonde, it was physical touch, the silent language of non-verbal communication. It was a way for Near to get in touch with his lover when words just didn't seem to be forthcoming, or his emotions went beyond simple verbal exchange. This kiss was seemingly unlike all the others, and yet comfortingly the same. The heat of friction, the soft pulse of desire moving in gentle waves up and down his spine, the way Mello's breath hitched each time Near's fingers latched to his clothes or back, all adding up to make his head spin dazedly.

It was so much sensation, so completely foreign, that he didn't even notice when the two of them lost their footing and began sailing towards the cold, unyielding ice below.

"Holy shit!" Mello cried laughingly, falling on the ground into a pile of limbs with Near, looking down at the snowy-haired boy with an expression of hilarity. Near, for his part, could only stare up at the him, blinking in a surprised way, his hands clutching Mello's shirt as he looked around them.

Thankfully no one had noticed…yet…

"What was that?!" Mello gasped, his breath coming out in sharp puffs that stung the air and fanned Near's face with clouds.

"Obviously," Near said, raising an eyebrow challengingly, "we just fell. We should get up before anyone sees us and interprets our position incorrectly."

Mello rolled his eyes, plainly dissatisfied with the answer, and shook his head. "Not _that_! Before that…what was that?"

"It was a kiss," Near answered, shifting uncomfortably underneath Mello who used his weight to bear down, making certain that they didn't move an inch before his curiosity was satiated. "We do it often. A caress of lips to create pleasure. You see?"

Before he could say anything else, Mello was laughing, a warm sound that tickled down Near's skin and made him smile, his cheeks heating up despite the temperature outside. His lover's laughter was infectious, though Near had never been the sort of person to show his delights on the surface. He'd always found that having the amusement on the inside was adequate enough for his own unique personality, though Mello often told him how much he'd love to hear Near laugh. Maybe someday he'd find something funny enough to finally make the snowy-haired boy chuckle…until then…better to not let things get too out of hand.

Leaning down slowly, Mello brushed their lips together again, still smiling. "I see." There was a long pause, eyes meeting for brief seconds that seemed longer until Mello spoke once more. "I also see that your cheeks are cold as death and we're laying sprawled on a floor of ice. Wanna get some ramen?"

Near's response was to nod happily, a quiet smile gracing his lips before allowing Mello to help him stand. Briefly, he followed behind the older boy, watching his back, the graceful way his shoulder blades moved under his clothes. Minute passed in silence until Near stopped walking altogether, his gaze unwavering and his heart pounding a little more loudly than he would have liked. Once more he was staring (how embarrassing). Once more he seemed frozen with things that had nothing to do with the cold.

Truly Near was enchanted…

Mello, always having been slightly unobservant at times, finally stopped and looked over his shoulder, flashing a curious glance back at Near. "What now?" he questioned, hands moving to his hips where they waited, impatient and slightly frustrated. The gesture was vaguely feminine…totally drama-queen…

"Can I at least watch you?" Near breathed, responding to Mello's earlier comment, not having been able to come up with anything at the time. The next words were spoken in a whisper, almost to himself, his voice reverent and swayed. "You always were a bit of a exhibitionist…"

"Like a toy you never take out of the box?" Mello mused, extending his hand and pulling Near into his body, his arm going around the smaller boy's shoulders. His voice was soft as he buried his nose in Near's hair, pushed it around with his face before speaking. "Only if you promise to take me out every once and a while and play with me…"

"Agreed," Near responded, hooking his own arm around Mello's thin waist, hugging him closer as they walked out of the man-made city of icy monoliths.

"I think I'd like konbu soy ramen…" Near said thoughtfully, a finger to his lips. The idea of the warm dish was promising, making his feet speed up without thinking toward one of the cities many ramen shops. He hadn't forgotten how cold he was, it had simply been pushed to the side for a time due to unforeseen circumstances.

"You would want something so bland," Mello responded, his eyes rolling as he reached out with his teeth and bit Near's cheek playfully. The gesture was one that only the blonde seemed to use, since apparently kisses on the cheek were much too gentle for his taste.

"It's not bland…its classic," Near replied, rubbing his cheek where Mello's teeth had made a slight impression, his expression pouting.

A short pause and Mello's face broke out in a wide grin, his voice laced with amusement and mischief.

"Sort of like you?"

"Shut up Mello…"


End file.
